DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Objections
Claims 2, 3, 7 and 9 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 2 Ln 12, please amend to --between [[an]] the oil pressure--.
Claim 3 Ln 5, please amend to --of [[the]] a rodless chamber--.
Claim 7 Ln 6-7, please amend to --as output[[s]] values of a fuzzy controller, then adding the[[se]] output values--.
Claim 9 Ln 3 --[[a]] the lifting cylinder--, to align with claim 1 Ln 3. Claim 9 has a plurality of terms that have antecedent basis in claim 1 but are presented herein at new terms. These terms all require amendment to align with their antecedent terms in claim 1.
Claim 9 Ln 30, please amend to --wherein [[the]] a swashplate--.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor, or for pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
Claim 1 Ln 9 states the limitation "from different accumulators in the cascade energy storage section”. It is unclear if these accumulators are distinct from the at least one accumulator of Ln 5. The cascade energy storage section lacks antecedent basis and it is unclear which previous section it is referring. Therefore, the scope of the claim is indeterminate. For examination, the limitation was interpreted as --from different accumulators of the at least one accumulator in the [[cascade]] energy storage section--.
Claim 1 Ln 16 states the limitation "of the engine”. The engine lacks antecedent basis and it is unclear which previous section it is referring. Therefore, the scope of the claim is indeterminate. For examination, the limitation was interpreted as -- of [[the]] an engine driving the variable oil pump--.
Claim 1 Ln 17 states the limitation "an output power of the accumulators”. It is unclear if this power is distinct from the output power of the energy storage section stated in Ln 14. Therefore, the scope of the claim is indeterminate. For examination, the limitation was interpreted as -- [[an]] the output power of the [[accumulators]] energy storage section--.
Claim 2 Ln 3 states the limitation "the accumulators are connected”. It is unclear if these accumulators are the same or distinct from the at least one accumulator of claim 1 Ln 5. Therefore, the scope of the claim is indeterminate. For examination, the limitation was interpreted as --the at least one accumulator is connected--.
Claim 2 Ln 3-4 states the limitation "the energy storage section comprises a first accumulator and a second accumulator”. It is unclear if these accumulators are distinct from the accumulators of claim 1 Ln 5. Therefore, the scope of the claim is indeterminate. For examination, the limitation was interpreted as -- the at least one accumulator comprises a first accumulator and a second accumulator--.
Claim 2 Ln 4-5 states the limitation "the control method for cascade release of high-pressure oil form all accumulators”. The cascade energy storage section lacks antecedent basis and it is unclear which previous section it is referring. Therefore, the scope of the claim is indeterminate. For examination, the limitation was interpreted as --the the high-pressure oil from the at least one accumulator--.
Claim 2 Ln 17 states the limitation "selecting an accumulator with the smallest pressure difference that satisfies the condition”. It is unclear if this accumulator is distinct from the first/second accumulator of Ln 4. The condition lacks antecedent basis and it is unclear which previous section it is referring. Therefore, the scope of the claim is indeterminate. For examination, the limitation was interpreted as --selecting [[an]] the first or the second accumulator with the smallest pressure difference that satisfies [[the]] a condition--.
Claim 2 Ln 19-20 states the limitation "until SOC state is 0”. It is unclear what is meant by the term SOC. The specification does not provide any further description of this term. Therefore, the scope of the claim is indeterminate. For examination, the limitation was interpreted as ‘pressure difference’.
Claim 10 Ln 3-4 states the limitation "a first accumulator and a second accumulator”. It is unclear if these accumulators are distinct from the accumulators of claim 1 Ln 5. Therefore, the scope of the claim is indeterminate. For examination, the limitation was interpreted as -- a first accumulator and a second accumulator of the at least one accumulator--.
Claims 3-9 are rejected at least for their dependence upon claim 1.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-10 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
Regarding claim 1, as far as is determinate, Ankargren; David Bengt Johan et al. US 20130199168 A1, hereinafter Ankargren discloses (Fig. 4) a control method for cascade utilization of recovered energy in a forklift hydraulic system comprising an oil supply section (20) and an energy storage section (34) connected to a lifting cylinder (6), wherein the oil supply section comprises a variable [0057] oil pump (20) connected to the lifting cylinder (3), and the energy storage section comprises at least one accumulator,
wherein the control method comprises the following steps:
step 1 (60): detecting a state of a fork of the forklift and, if the fork is in a lifting state, proceeding to Step 2 [0067];
step 2 (62): releasing high-pressure oil from different accumulators in the cascade energy storage section to supply energy to the lifting cylinder of the fork [0069];
step 3: determining an output flow of the variable oil pump based on a lifting speed of the fork [0068-0069].
Ankargren fails to explicitly state that the method further comprises:
step 4: determining a lifting power demand based on a load of the fork;
step 5: determining an output power of the energy storage section based on a real-time output pressure value of the energy storage section;
step 6: determining a minimum output power of the engine based on the lifting power demand and an output power of the accumulators;
step 7: controlling an engine speed and a displacement of the variable oil pump.
Withstanding the formalities/rejections listed previously, Claim 1 contains allowable subject matter. The prior art does not anticipate nor render obvious the combination set forth in the independent claim, and specifically does not show the claimed steps 4-7. Although Ankargren discloses a similar device and method steps 1-3, there is no teaching in the prior art of record that would, reasonably and absent impermissible hindsight, motivate one having ordinary skill in the art to modify the teachings of Ankargren to incorporate the details of the method steps of claim 4-7, along with the other claimed components of the method. Therefore, when viewed as a whole and for at least the foregoing reasons, the prior art of record neither anticipates nor rendered obvious the present invention as set forth in the independent claim.
Claims 2-10 depend from claim 1.
Any comments considered necessary by applicant must be submitted no later than the payment of the issue fee and, to avoid processing delays, should preferably accompany the issue fee. Such submissions should be clearly labeled “Comments on Statement of Reasons for Allowance.”
Relevant Art
The following is a listing of relevant art:
US 20100037604 A1, US 20230139226 A1, US 20130195681 A1, US 20210062459 A1, US 20060075749 A1 disclose control methods for hydraulic systems comprising a pump, accumulator and engine.
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MATTHEW WIBLIN whose telephone number is (571)272-9836. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday 8:00 am - 4:00 pm.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, NATHANIEL WIEHE can be reached on 571-272-8648. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MATTHEW WIBLIN/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3745
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